Jo Malone Orris & Sandalwood Cologne Intense

Hi Guys!

I hope you’re having a lovely day? I’m been making the most of the sunshine this morning, and I have the latest beautiful Cologne Intense fragrance from Jo Malone to share with you now…

For those not too familiar with the Cologne Intense range, this is a rather special collection of scents created by Jo Malone focussing specifically on rich and precious ingredients, such as oud and incense, as well as florals including rose and tuberose (Tuberose Angelica is a must-try). Jo Malone felt that the woody and powdery qualities of iris were missing from this collection, so they decided to create a fragrance around orris – and Orris & Sandalwood was born.

Now I must admit, I wasn’t completely sure what orris was to begin with, so just to give a bit of background info, orris actually comes from the roots of the Iris Pallid, rather than the flower. It grows near Florence and is renowned as a very rare and precious substance. Rather surprisingly, orris takes up to five years to to produce, from harvesting, to drying, through to extraction – though the length of time and depth of process goes a long way to explaining why orris is so precious. Jo Malone wanted to remain true to the traditional approach of harvesting, to bring the unique qualities of the orris to their latest fragrance.

And yes, the gorgeous fragrance! On first try, you’re hit with a wonderful bouquet of violet – and I know violet isn’t to everyones taste, but this isn’t overly floral as you might expect. It also has an interesting unisex appeal due to the woody nature of the orris, which is emphasised by the depth of Sandalwood at the base. Apart from being distinctively violet in nature, this scent is definitely warm, inviting and hinting on powdery. I think lovers of violet and sandalwood will be in heaven with this perfume.

If you like layering your scents, which I highly recommend by the way, Jo Malone recommends layering Orris & Sandalwood with Blackberry & Bay to create a compelling woody floral – this sounds right up my street so I may need to treat myself to Blackberry and Bay now!

Orris & Sandalwod is available now from Jo Malone at £105.00 for 100ml.